Published February 7, 2025
President Trump’s affection for tariffs is being roundly criticized across the ideological spectrum. That should give Americans reason to be suspicious.
Some supporters of Trump’s preference note that this demonstrates the continuing affection that elites have for globalism regardless of their nominal placement on left or right. But simply noting that is not sufficient to merit our support for Trump.
Tariffs should not be an article of faith for anyone. We should instead evaluate each proposed imposition as we would any other proposed government action, in terms of costs and benefits.
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Henry Olsen, a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, studies and provides commentary on American politics. His work focuses on how America’s political order is being upended by populist challenges, from the left and the right. He also studies populism’s impact in other democracies in the developed world.
